We have a President who is intentionally hurting the nation and the people he’s entrusted to serve. In the name of the sequester, the White House’s own plan to clinch a budget deal last year, Obama is willfully and intentionally doing as much damage as he can. This is not subjective, but is verifiable fact.

The President rejected a proposal by the Senate Republicans to give the President more flexibility to pick and choose which programs should be cut to reach the $85 billion spending reduction over seven months mandated by the so-called sequester. That would have given him the opportunity to meet the requirements of the budget deal, without affecting the people our government is supposed to be serving. Keep in mind, that these legislatively mandated reductions are not cuts in actual spending, but only reflect a 2.5% reduction in the growth of government spending.

According to the President a few weeks ago, “There’s no smart way to do that [the sequester cuts],” he said. “These cuts are wrong. They’re not smart, they’re not fair. They’re a self-inflicted wound that doesn’t have to happen.” This is a surprising admission that his own plan is, in fact, stupid!

Actually, Mr. President, there was a smart and prudent way to do it. The third annual installment of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report spelled out a reasonable way to meet the spending-growth reduction. According to Sen. Tom Coburn, “These are among the findings in the new GAO report that found 162 areas where services are duplicated or money is being wasted in the federal government. The annual cost of duplicative or wasteful programs is estimated at roughly $250 billion. That’s 250 billion dollars a year,” Coburn said. “Just in waste, in duplication, in stupidity, and lack of efficiency and effectiveness by the federal government. (It) makes you want to pull your hair out.”

By simply incorporating the GAO recommendations, cost savings amounting to three times the $85 billion reductions specified in the sequester deal could have been realized! And there would be no impact on travelers, no impact on meat inspections, no furloughed TSA agents or Department of Energy employees, and no impact on our military’s ability to protect the nation.

But Obama rejected congressionally authorized flexibility in applying the reductions, and he opted instead to make the sequester as painful as possible. The Washington Times reports of emails to department heads that the administration intended to make good on its warnings of the “painful” sequestration cuts. According to the Times, the emails directed agency heads, “not to do anything that would lessen the dire impacts Congress had been warned of.”

It’s clear that Obama intends to make the cuts painful to average Americans while he and his family continue their lives of royalty, which we bankroll to the tune of $1.4 billion per year. In the seven weeks since he announced the White House tours would be cancelled, he’s had ten trips, and two all-star concerts in the White House. Don’t hold your breath watching for the Obama’s to curtail their extravagant travel and vacation plans! The only thing being cut at the White House is White House tours. And further proving that it’s all political, and that the President still does have discretion, Obamacare employees are not being furloughed, or facing reduced pay or work hours.

For air travelers it’s a different story, as they began this past week to feel the pain of the President’s decision as the Federal Aviation Administration has furloughed 1,500, or 10% of the nation’s 15,000 air traffic controllers. This has created delays of hundreds of flights.

Sen. Rand Paul said this week, “I think that it’s inexcusable to take important things like travel, air traffic controllers or meat inspectors or something that most of us agree we should have, and play a game with it,” the senator said. “The same day that [President Obama] announces that we have no self-guided tours in the White House, he sends $250 million to Egypt. We’ve got money. It’s a matter of priorities, and a good leader wouldn’t cut essential services. So I think it’s a bit of a charade and it ought to stop.”

Clearly the White House places politics ahead of the needs and interests of the American people. It would appear that either he thinks the blame should be ascribed to members of Congress who would not agree to the budget deal last year without some spending cuts, or he is intentionally curbing high profile, required services to show that we can’t cut a dime from actual spending. Most likely, it is for both of those reasons, which places his political agenda ahead of our interests.

The President rejected flexibility in applying the spending cuts, ignored the GAO report of where reductions could be made without adversely affecting services, and his agency heads are being instructed to make the cuts “as painful as possible.” This is not leadership; it’s ignominious politics, Chicago-style!

AP award winning columnist Richard Larsen is President of Larsen Financial, a brokerage and financial planning firm in Pocatello, Idaho, and is a graduate of Idaho State University with degrees in Political Science and History and former member of the Idaho State Journal Editorial Board. He can be reached at rlarsenen@cableone.net.

Comments

If the House DOLES out the monies, then why on earth haven't they TIGHTENED the reins on ob spending allowance !!!!! Limit him to only ONE MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR. THAT IS IT. If the wife needs a secretary he can pay for it out of HIS annual salary. This is the correct way.

What else is to be expected of this incompetent bogus prez, he is not only dumb, he is evil and that makes a very dangerous combination. The more I read of this man’s thinking up of new ways to hurt the American citizens that more I hate him. For those idiots who re-elected him, I hope they suffer the most, those die hard obama fans.

You are right. If you people don't want your children and grandchildren to live in slavery under tryanny – and it will be devastating if you peek into Obama's future for Americans. There is AGENDA 21 – those of you who do not know what this UN bill contains, I suggest you do so immediately. This UN bill has been steathily creeping up for 20 years, which is now in every city, county and state. Go to the site "Democrats Against Agenda 21" The FEMA camps are not for just the homeless!!! Janet Incompetano's DHS purchase of billions of ammo??? Borders open and Rino's (John McAmensty and Rubio) and their Gang of Eight have compiled 800 pages of garbage on Comprehensive Immigration. Mostly lies. We don't need illegal immigration or amnesty – we need DEPORTATION! Obama and his anti-American administration and followers and our corrupt Congress need to go and quickly – the longer we wait the worse it is going to get. Be prepared. I can promise you that you won't like what Obama wants to give you!! He does not care about you – whether you support him or not you will receive the same treatment as those who love this country and will fight for it.

yes he has done more damage with his pen to this country than any sword ever has. As a Vietnam vet I take personally the damage that he is doing to our country intentionally. I have not met one Veteran who has any use for this so called commander in chief and sorry excuse for a president!

We will be needing all of our ex military because he is going to force a war. We better start screaming again American people because they are coming for our guns again.!!! This Nigro is not going to stop until we stop him

That sounds great.!!! I hope they get Obama’s sorry butt.!!! Go Special Ops.!!! Catherine Albeanese…. We have known for years that he is a terrorist but we could not get the other half of America to listen. There are still millions who do not know because they only believe what they see on the nightly news…. Which we know is greatly censored. They are coming for our guns again very soon start raising hell With the senators and congressmen. We stopped it last time we need to do it again.!!!

Well thats just what I did yesterday not one not 2 but all 100 of our Senators did I right a letter to sending them this video the single most powerful video I have ever came across and you need to watch it now and spread it everywhere and everyone you now! Here it is http://vimeo.com/63749370

I spend 8 hours sending the letters to all 100 Senators and I put them in there place and demanded they come back down to earth and work as a team and stop with the bs gun control and secure our borders!

I can't believe it's taken 5 years for everyone to figure this out! This is so frustrating to me as everyone knows what this fraud is about. Had this been Bush they would have impeached him LONG AGO. Every politician up there is afraid of him. That's why they have not done anything. I think Obama has so much dirt on so many of them and that is why they let him be the dictator thAt he is.

Obama is nothing more than an ex lawyer who lost his license in Chicago because he is a thug. He is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood and wears a ring that says ” I will only be true to Allah”. Our Congress and Senate and everyone else are afraid because he is a member of the Muslim Brotherhood which is one of the largest terrorist organizations in the world. I’m sure they have all been threatened and intimidated Along with all of their families. He is behind the Boston bombing and there will be more bombings by terrorists becausef Obama tells them what to do. The more the American people resist what he wants the more damage he will do

Say you where a COMMUNIST or a TERRORIST, and you wanted to destroy a nation how would you go about it? Perhaps if a country was foolish enough not to require a legitimate Birth Certificate and was willing to vote you in not once but in fact twice, how easy would this be to place the enemy at the very of the helm? Why a nation could be destroyed in less than two, four year terms, imagine that!
After shredding their Constitution and their Amendments, by weakening their rights, and freedoms, with the stroke of your LEFT HANDED pen it would be very easy to destroy a nation from within. After that all that would be required would be to create a police state that would be willing to confiscate their weapons and declare Marshal Law through Executive Order. WELCOME TO THE NEW AMERIKA / MISSION COMPLETED!

HIs takeover is not complete until he gets the guns…. you can’t conquer a nation that is fully armed. And we will not give up our guns we will start killing instead.!!!!. Every Muslim Mexican black white etc. That follows the Negro Muslim terrorist Obama we will kill when he starts a war. I don’t think he realizes the determination of white people…. so we will have to show the Muslim terrorist in chief. Go hide in your bunker coward black.!!

Dave…… we have a lot of ignorant people in this country and those who aren’t ignorant are evil and corrupt. So we the smart people of America are actually battling our own ignorant people along with the Muslim terrorists And all those they have Working for them.
If we don’t sign all of the petitions we can find and contact our congressmen and senators today and tomorrow ….the end of the week they will pass the immigration reform bill. We really need to stop this…. every 30 days 100000 Mexicans cross our borders illegally. . Also sign anything you can and contact your congressman and senators and tell them to stop Obamacare.!!!